CMYK Thursday, May 15, 2014
Sports
B
Hall, Hamrick win individual state titles BY KYLE FUNDERBURK AND LATRICE WILLIAMS
lwilliams@clickthepaper.com
Jefferson High School pole vaulter Mason Hamrick struggled at times this season but his 15-foot mark was good enough to 3-peat as the AA state champion in the AA state track and field championship held in Jefferson May 8-10. “Winning was awesome but knowing I had the highest jump of everyone was even better,” Hamrick said. “It’s a year-round thing; you can’t just go out there one year and do it and expect that to carry on to the next year. You have to work your butt off constantly.” Teammate James Howard earned a second-place finish, aid-
ing JHS to an overall second-place finish after Day One. But they weren’t the only Dragons that stepped up. Satchel Turpin, in his first year as a track and field athlete, nearly earned a state title in the triple jump but fell just short against Miquavius Searcy of Lamar County. Dragon Ethan Hix added a fifth-place finish in the discus and Turpin made good on his seventh-place finish in the high jump. But the unsung hero was Dalton Hill. After injuring his ankle at the end of a seventh-place finish in the 110 meter hurdles, Hill quickly recovered to finish third in the 300 meter hurdles. He finished the day as the third leg of Jefferson’s 4x400-meter relay team, fighting through pain the entire time. “After the 110 hurdles, I bruised my ankle really bad on a hur-
dle. Then I hit the second hurdle in the 300 and my ankle almost gave out on me. I didn’t want to let my team down so I ran in the 4x400 and did the best I could,” said Hill. “It was the state meet and everyone was relying on me to pick up points. My teammates motivated me to keep going and finish this last meet of the year. I knew I was ranked second or third in the 300 hurdles; after hitting that second hurdle my ankle was hurting really [bad] but I didn’t want to risk the points so I gave it all I had,” Hill stated. And his efforts certainly paid off as Jefferson finished tied for fourth with Fitzgerald. See TRACK AND FIELD 2B
Doug Chellew The Paper
Dalton Hill (Jefferson) runs through pain in one of two hurdles events. His strong performance helped the Dragons finish tied for fourth overall with Fitzgerald.
Hawks come up short in lacrosse playoff run BY LATRICE WILLIAMS
lwilliams@clickthepaper.com
After losing in the first round of the state playoffs a year ago, the Mill Creek High School boys’ lacrosse team (10-9) found themselves in the same boat when they dropped a 13-9 decision to Johns Creek May 6. Both teams looked to be evenly matched and played that way throughout most of the game. Mill Creek saw multiple ties, including at 2-2, 3-3 and 6-6. A goal by Zach Roper pulled the Hawks ahead 7-6 but, once the Gladiators pulled head by two, they never looked back. The Hawks squad has had its fair share of ups and downs this season. After giving up a few area games, all Mill Creek could do was simply fight for a playoff spot and they did just that.
Locals enjoy Drift Atlanta
Mill Creek played its best lacrosse in April, clinching a six-game winning streak that included victories over Brookwood, Parkview and West Forsyth. The Hawks opened the season with a close loss to Walton but punched in two wins over Duluth and Collins Hill. But a four-game losing streak plagued the Hawks, including two from two squads from Maryland in Archbishop Spalding and Severn School. The Hawks will graduate a ton of seniors, including Will Bryan, Cooper Doyen, Andrew Eubanks, Kevin Maddox, Brandon Proctor and Michael Ward. But Mill Creek could return better than ever next season as they return some of their top players including Brine All-American Zach Roper, defensive playmaker Jake Hubbard and Sam Kibildis.
Doug Chellew The Paper
Top: Hundreds of drift lovers piled in Road Atlanta in Braselton May 9-10 to watch drivers set the track ablaze in the annual Drift Atlanta race event. Bottom: Winner Vaughn Gittin (middle) is ecstatic over his Drift Atlanta win. For more photos, visit ClickThePaper. com.
For The Paper
The Hawks gathered for a group shot before they loaded the buses for a trip to Maryland March 20.
LOCAL baseball
local baseball
LOCAL basketball
Panthers summer schedule
Jefferson to host baseball camp
Jackson County hosting hoops camp
The season for the Jackson County Comprehensive High School baseball teams may be over but May 28-31 the Panthers will be right back on the diamond as they compete in the Norcross/Wesleyan Summer Showdown. Visit jcpantherathletics.com for the full summer schedule for the junior varsity and varsity teams.
Jefferson will host a baseball camp June 16-19 for athletes ages 6-13. The cost is $65 before June 13 and $70 after. Each camper will be given a T-shirt. The camp will allow future and current -Dragons to build on their skills while developing new ones. The camp will also receive instruction on base running, fielding, hitting and throwing from JHS coaches and players. Contest winners will be given a trophy. For more information, contact Tommy Knight at 678-313-9967.
Head coach Julie McCutcheon, along with assistant coaches Todd McCutcheon and Heather Bruce, will host a basketball skills camp from 9 a.m. to noon on May 27-29. The camp is open to girls entering second to seventh grade and will be held in the new gym. The cost is $50 per camper. The cost includes a T-shirt, awards and refreshments on the last day of the camp. The application may be turned in on the first day of camp by 8:30 a.m. For more information, email McCutcheon at jmccutcheon@jackson.k12.ga.us or call 706-387-2006.